Unless something changes at the last minute, the Academic Staff Union of Universities may end its strike on Thursday (today).
Last Friday, the Court of Appeal told the union to stop going on strike.
The House of Representatives also got involved, which gave people hope that the union might soon end the strike.
DSMEDIA24 found out that most of the more than 123 union branches have finished their congresses on the strike.
DSMEDIA24 found that while some universities voted for the strike to end, others voted for it to end under certain conditions.
Here’s how:
One of our reporters, however, heard that the branch at the Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife did not agree on anything.
“No agreement was reached,” a source in the branch said. Members agreed to do what the union’s National Executive Committee told them to do. Remember that we were already on strike before the national body said so.”
At Nnamdi Azikiwe University, things were different. One of our reporters heard that the branch voted in favor of a “conditional suspension.”
But at a meeting at the Federal University of Technology in Akure, where ASUU members from the Adekunle Ajasin University in Akungba-Akoko, also in Ondo State, were also present, members voted to suspend the strike so that they wouldn’t go against court orders.
“At first, members didn’t want to vote, but you know ASUU is a group of smart people, and we can’t break the law. One union member at the congress told The PUNCH, “That’s why we voted for suspension.”
It was also said that Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria voted to end the strike, but only under certain conditions.
At Usmanu DanFodiyo University, our reporters also learned that the branch voted to suspend based on the order from the Appeal Court.
Salaries increment
DSMEDIA24 has heard that ASUU is waiting for the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (ret. ), to decide what to do about the pay raise for university professors.
Our reporters talked to different people in the ASUU-NEC and found out that no deal has been made about the percentage increase.
One of the sources said, “There hasn’t been an agreement yet on the issue of pay raises.” During the meeting with the Speaker, the ASUU President was asked how much professors get paid. He said it was N416,000. The Speaker was sad about the situation, but he was told that professors at Rivers State University could make up to N1 million per month. The Speaker called someone to make sure it was true, and it was.
“But he couldn’t make a decision, so he said he would tell Buhari everything and that the President would make the final choice.
“On the issue of earned allowances, N50 billion has been set aside to cover unpaid earned allowances, and N170 billion has been set aside for salary increases. But after 2024, the earned allowances will be paid by the different governing councils, and N300 billion will be used to improve the country.
When asked about the possibility of ending the strike, Dr. Lazarus Maigoro, a member of the ASUU NEC and the University of Jos ASUU Chairman, said, “The NEC will decide.”
The National President of the union, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, could not be reached right away for comment.
Benue ASUU
Like some other universities, the ASUU chapter at Benue State University decided to follow what the Appeal Court said.
Our reporter heard that the meeting between ASUU and Joseph Sarwuan Tarka University took place on Wednesday.
Though, the ASUU chairs from the two universities, Dr. Victor Tarnongo and Prof. Ameh Ejembi, refused to comment, saying that they were on their way to Abuja for the union’s NEC meeting after a meeting of their respective chapters.
NEC meeting
The NEC meeting is expected to happen on Thursday at the University of Abuja (today).
There, the union is expected to say officially what it thinks about the strike that has been going on for so long.
UTAS should be added.
Prof. Ganiu Olatunde, the outgoing Vice Chancellor of the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, has told the Federal Government to add some of the features of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution to the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System to stop another strike.
This was said by the VC on Tuesday, when he talked to reporters in his office to celebrate the end of his five-year term.
Olatunde said that the only way for the ASUU and the FG to end their conflict over the best way to pay lecturers’ salaries without violence is for the government to merge the two payment platforms, the UTAS and the IPPIS.
